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Background: miR-144-3p exerts inhibitory roles in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This paper aims to explore that miR-144-3p and its predictive target gene, SLIT- and NTRK-like family member 4 (SLITRK4), in HCC progression. Materials and Methods: The levels of SLITRK4 and miR-144-3p were determined by western blot and qPCR. A loss- and gain-of-function test was used to test whether the relationship between miR-144-3p and SlitrK4 affected the growth of HCC cells. StarBase examined the miR-144-3p target prediction using SLITRK4. Through the use of a luciferase reporter experiment, miR-144-3p's targeting SLITRK4 was identified. The salvage experiment confirmed that miR-144-3p interacts SLITRK4 to regulate the progression of HCC. Results: Findings showned that the expression of miR-144-3p decreased in HCC tissue and cells. MiR-144-3p inhibits deterioration progression of HCC cell progression. MiR-144-3p targeted SLITRK4 and negatively modulated SLITRK4 levels. Besides, miR-144-3p upregulation decreased HCC migration and invasion activity, while SLITRK4 overexpression reduced this inhibition effects. Conclusions: MiR-144-3p regulates invasion and proliferation activity in HCC by targeting SLITRK4. MiR-144-3P/SLITRK4 axis might provide a potential anti-cancer therapy pathway for clinical diagnosis, treatment and prognosis in hepatoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pathophysiology of post-operative cognitive dysfunction remains unclear and there is no widely accepted animal model that can simulate its occurrence. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of surgical stress on long-term post-operative memory function in mice of different ages. Healthy C57Bl/6J male mice, of either 4- or 16-month-old, were each randomly divided into three subgroups. (1) Control group: neither anesthesia nor surgery was performed; (2) Anesthesia group: general anesthesia was administrated, surgery was not performed; (3) Surgery group: two-thirds partial hepatectomy was completed in about 15 min under general anesthesia. Morris water maze test was performed after 30 days. In mice of both month-ages, the escape latencies as well as the swimming distances decreased significantly across training days ( P<0.001). In 4-month-old mice, there were no significant differences among three subgroups. In 16-month-old mice, the escape latency was significantly less in the surgery group than in the control group ( P=0.001), and the swimming distance was significantly shorter in the surgery group than in the control and the anesthesia groups ( P=0.001 and 0.047, respectively). In the spatial probe test, time spent in the target quadrant was significantly longer in the surgery group than in the combined control and anesthesia group ( P=0.037). Partial hepatectomy did not produce significant long-term effects on memory function in 4-month-old mice. However, it significantly improved long-term memory function in 16-month-old mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A generalized volume integral equation method is formulated for electromagnetic scattering by arbitrarily shaped complex bodies with inhomogeneous bi-isotropy. Based on the volume equivalence principle, the integral equations are represented in terms of a pair of coupled bi-isotropic polarized volume electric and magnetic flux densities. Reduction of the integral equations into the corresponding matrix equations is obtained using the method of moments (MoM) combined with the tetrahedral mesh. In the MoM solution, the three-dimensional solenoidal function is incorporated as the basis function defined over each tetrahedral element and the details of implementation, particularly the treatment of integral singularities, will be elucidated. The efficiency and accuracy of the proposed method are validated by illustratively supported examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A full-wave analysis is presented of frequency-selective surfaces (FSSs) on a biaxially anisotropic substrate. The integral equations are first transformed into the spectral domain ones through the use of the Floquet theorem and then solved by the method of moments. Since the wave immittance of the biaxially anisotropic substrate is derived in a closed form, the resulting impedance matrix can be obtained conveniently by using the spectral domain immittance approach (SDI). The validity of theoretical formulations is verified by illustrative numerical results and their comparisons. The obtained results are compared with the existing data and other analyses and good agreements are observed. The effects of biaxially anisotropy on the FSS have been studied and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several Krylov subspace iterative algorithms are compared as the solvers for the discrete dipole approximation method to analyze the electromagnetic scattering problem. Fast Fourier transform technique is exploited to accelerate the computation of matrix-vector product. Numerical examples for homogeneous spheres indicate that the results of radar cross section agree well with the exact solutions. Some misleading concepts in literatures are clarified. We give a new comparison of the computational complexities of these methods. Faster solvers are recommended according to the size of scatterer. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 48: 1741–1746, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.21760 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A combined algorithm of the edge-based finite-element method (FEM) and the short-open calibration (SOC) technique is presented in order to analyze periodic structures. The computational domain is reduced to a unit cell through the use of waveguide simulators. To accurately predict the characteristics of periodic structures, the SOC technique is directly accommodated into the FEM formulation and removes unwanted parasitic errors brought about by the approximation of exciting sources. The developed FEM algorithm improves the accuracy of the solution and causes the rapid convergence of iterative solvers, when compared to the FEM combined with perfectly matching layers (PMLs) or absorbed boundary conditions (ABCs). The results for some periodic structures are given to show the accuracy and rapidity of the algorithm. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 45: 427–430, 2005; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.20844 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel numerical de-embedding scheme called the short-open calibration (SOC) technique, in conjunction with the vector finite element method (FEM), has been developed to characterize two-port network of arbitrarily shaped, three-dimensional discontinuities in microwave circuits. This SOC technique is effectively implemented into the FEM for boundary truncation of the unbounded circuit structures. In such a manner, fast convergence of iterative solver for large-sparse linear matrix equations from FEM is achieved. The SOC technique is used to remove parasitic effects brought by the approximation of the impressed voltage source and also the problem of resulting consistency between the two- and three-dimensional simulations. Scattering parameters of discontinuous sections are constructed from the definition of port voltages and currents. Numerical solutions are well compared with those published in the available literatures. It is demonstrated that the features of the SOC technique are advantageous when combined with FEM for electromagnetic problems. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The multifrontal method is applied for solving a large, sparse, and unsymmetric system of linear equations resulting from the use of the edge-based finite-element method (FEM). The finite-element method combined with perfectly matched layers (PML) is given for simulation of microwave devices, and the combined algorithm of the multifrontal method is described. The electrical characteristics of typical waveguide devices such as the ferrite phase shifter and circulator are analyzed, and the calculated results are compared with those obtained from the literature. In order to demonstrate the efficiency of the multifrontal method, the computational time is compared with that of both successive overrelaxation (SOR) preconditioned conjugate-gradient (PCG) and conjugate-gradient methods (CG) for the phase shifter. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 35: 76–81, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.10521 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, ferrite waveguide devices are analysed by use of the edge-based vector finite element method combined with the short-open calibration (SOC) technique. The formulation with both permittivity and permeability tensors for tetrahedral vector elements is analytically given in terms of the electric field. The SOC technique is directly accommodated in the FEM algorithm and used to truncate the computational domain. The SOC technique removes or separates unwanted parasitics obtained by the approximation of the impressed voltage source and the inconsistency between different simulations. Several types of ferrite waveguide device are analysed and the results are compared with those of the available publications. A good agreement is observed between them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Evolution characteristics of a Kerr black hole (BH) are investigated by considering the coexistence of disc accretion with the Blandford–Znajek process (the BZ process) and magnetic coupling of the BH with the surrounding disc (MC process). (i) The rate of extracting energy from the rotating BH in the BZ process and that in MC process are expressed by a unified formula, which is derived by using an improved equivalent circuit. (ii) The mapping relation between the angular coordinate on the BH horizon and the radial coordinate on the disc is given in the context of general relativity and conservation of magnetic flux. (iii) The power and torque in the BZ process are compared with those in MC process in detail. (iv) Evolution characteristics of the BH and energy extracting efficiency are discussed by using the characteristic functions of BH evolution in the corresponding parameter space. (v) Power dissipation on the BH horizon and BH entropy increase are discussed by considering the coexistence of the above energy mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The multifrontal method is applied for solving a large system of linear equations resulting from the use of the edge-based finite-element method (FEM). The finite-element method combined with the perfectly matched layers (PMLs) is given for the simulation of microwave filters, and the algorithm of the multifrontal method is described in detail. The reflection loss and insertion loss of several filters are analyzed as examples, and the obtained results are compared with those obtained from the literature. In order to demonstrate the efficiency of the multifrontal method, the computational time is compared with that of both the symmetric successive overrelaxation (SSOR) preconditioned conjugate-gradient (PCG) and conjugate-gradient methods (CG) for a thick-iris waveguide bandpass filer. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 31: 465–470, 2001. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a spectral–pseudospectral domain technique is presented for the full-wave analysis of a three-dimensional MMIC. This technique combines the advantages of pseudospectral method of lines with those of spectral-domain analysis. In conjunction with the cavity-resonance technique, it enables one to efficiently extract the s-parameters of three-dimensional planar circuits. To demonstrate the generality and validity of the proposed method, numerical analyses are performed for several structures such as microstrip resonators, planar transmission-line steps, and a parallel coupled-line filter. The convergence behaviors are provided for line discretization based on the pseudospectral strategy and finite difference (FD), respectively. The calculated results are compared with those published in previous literature. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 31: 340–345, 2001. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the application of the edge-based vector finite-element method combined with the short-open calibration (SOC) technique to three-dimensional microstrip discontinuity is presented. This SOC technique is directly accommodated in the FEM algorithm, and is used to truncate the computational domain. The developed FEM algorithm is applied to the modeling of microstrip discontinuities that can be segmented into two distinct sections: a static model of feedlines, and a dynamic model of circuit discontinuity. The FEM is formulated in such a way that the port voltages and currents are explicitly represented through relevant network matrices. The SOC technique is used to remove or separate unwanted parasitic errors brought by the approximation of the impressed voltage source, and also to address the problem of the resulting consistency between different simulations. Truncation of the computational domain by the SOC technique for microstrip circuits makes the iterative solvers for large-sparse linear matrix equations from the FEM converge much faster than by perfectly matching layers (PMLs). Results for microstrip discontinuities are very well compared with available publications. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 31: 169–174, 2001. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the application of the edge-based vector finite-element method combined with the short-open calibration (SOC) technique to three-dimensional waveguide discontinuity was presented. This SOC technique is directly accommodated in the FEM algorithm, and is used to truncate the computational domain. The developed FEM algorithm is applied to the modeling of dielectric-filled waveguide discontinuities that can be segmented into two distinct sections: the static model of feed lines, and the dynamic model of circuit discontinuity. The FEM is formulated in such a way that the port voltages and currents are explicitly represented through relevant network matrices. The SOC technique is used to remove or separate unwanted parasitics brought by the approximation of the impressed voltage source, as well as the problem of the resulting consistency between different simulations. Truncation of the computational domain by the SOC technique makes the iterative solvers for large sparse linear matrix equations from the FEM converge much faster than by perfectly matched layers (PML). Results for full-height/partially dielectric-filled waveguide discontinuities are very well compared with available publications. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 27: 438–444, 2000. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An off-nadir canopy reflectance model, the Liang and Strahler algorithm for the Coupled Atmosphere and Canopy (CAC) model, was used to simulate multi-angle reflectances based on various combinations of canopy biophysical parameters. Biophysical parameters such as leaf angle distribution (LAD) and leaf area index (LAI) were input to the CAC model along with reflectances of leaf and soil and aerosol optical depth. The CAC model, however, can only be inverted through numerical iterations and it is extremely difficult to use for retrieval of those biophysical parameters with ordinary inversion methods. In order to retrieve those biophysical parameters, we employed an error backpropagation feed-forward neural network program. We constructed a number of neural network models based on the simulated results from the CAC model. In this paper, we report the results obtained from retrieving any individual parameter from multi-angle reflectances and results obtained from simultaneously retrieving some combinations of two parameters and five parameters. We tested the use of a different number of multi-angle reflectances as input to the neural networks. This number varied in the range 1-64. The test results showed that a relative error between 1 and 5% or better was achievable for retrieving one parameter at a time or two parameters simultaneously. The relative errors for two of the five simultaneously retrieved parameters were less than 17%. The amount of computation required by simultaneous retrieval of five parameters was prohibitively high for a regular workstation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Erector spinae plane block and paravertebral block can provide analgesia for abdominal surgery. It is unclear whether erector spinae block is inferior to paravertebral block. We aimed to determine whether sufentanil dose and pain intensity (11‐point scale) to 24 h after erector spinae block exceeded those after paravertebral block by no more than 5 μg and 1 point, respectively. We randomly allocated 166 adults to 0.4 ml.kg−1 ropivacaine 0.375% before scheduled laparoscopic nephroureterectomy, 83 each to erector spinae or paravertebral injection. We measured incision pain and intra‐abdominal pain at rest and on movement 0.5 h, 2 h, 6 h, 18 h, 24 h and 48 h after surgery. Median (IQR [range]) cumulative sufentanil dose after erector spinae block was 15 (5–30 [0–105]) μg vs. 20 (10–50 [0–145]) μg after paravertebral block, median (95%CI) difference 5 μg (0–10), erector spinae non‐inferiority p < 0.001. Median (IQR [range]) pain were 1.5 (1.0–2.0 [0.0–5.3]) after erector spinae block vs. 2.0 (1.0–2.5 [0.0–6.0]) after paravertebral block, median (95% CI) difference 0.3 (0.0–0.5), erector spinae non‐inferiority p < 0.001. Adverse events did not differ between groups. Erector spinae block analgesia was not inferior to paravertebral block analgesia after laparoscopic nephroureterectomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This systematic review and meta-analysis summarizes the safety and efficacy of high flow nasal cannula (HFNC) in patients with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure.Methods: We performed a comprehensive search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Web of Science. We identified randomized controlled trials that compared HFNC to conventional oxygen therapy. We pooled data and report summary estimates of effect using relative risk for dichotomous outcomes and mean difference or standardized mean difference for continuous outcomes, with 95% confidence intervals. We assessed risk of bias of included studies using the Cochrane tool and certainty in pooled effect estimates using GRADE methods.Results: We included 9 RCTs (n = 2093 patients). We found no difference in mortality in patients treated with HFNC (relative risk [RR] 0.94, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.67-1.31, moderate certainty) compared to conventional oxygen therapy. We found a decreased risk of requiring intubation (RR 0.85, 95% CI 0.74-0.99) or escalation of oxygen therapy (defined as crossover to HFNC in the control group, or initiation of non-invasive ventilation or invasive mechanical ventilation in either group) favouring HFNC-treated patients (RR 0.71, 95% CI 0.51-0.98), although certainty in both outcomes was low due to imprecision and issues related to risk of bias. HFNC had no effect on intensive care unit length of stay (mean difference [MD] 1.38 days more, 95% CI 0.90 days fewer to 3.66 days more, low certainty), hospital length of stay (MD 0.85 days fewer, 95% CI 2.07 days fewer to 0.37 days more, moderate certainty), patient reported comfort (SMD 0.12 lower, 95% CI 0.61 lower to 0.37 higher, very low certainty) or patient reported dyspnea (standardized mean difference [SMD] 0.16 lower, 95% CI 1.10 lower to 1.42 higher, low certainty). Complications of treatment were variably reported amongst included studies, but little harm was associated with HFNC use.Conclusion: In patients with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, HFNC may decrease the need for tracheal intubation without impacting mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vitamin D is important for maintaining physiological functions including cognition and its deficiency is associated with the occurrence of cognitive impairment. This study was to explore the association between preoperative vitamin D status and the occurrence of postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) in elderly patients undergoing major surgery.Methods: This was a predefined exploratory sub-analysis of one-centre data from a randomized controlled trial. In all, 123 elderly (≥ 65 years) patients who were scheduled to undergo major cancer surgery were recruited. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration was measured before surgery. In total, 59 nonsurgical control subjects with comparable age and education level were also enrolled. A battery of neuropsychological tests was administered the day before and the 7th day after surgery in patients or at the same time interval in control subjects. POCD was diagnosed according to the ISPOCD1 definition.Results: 71.5% (88/123) of elderly patients had vitamin D deficiency (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration < 12 ng/ml) before surgery; 24.4% (30/123) of them developed cognitive dysfunction at 1 week after surgery. After adjusting for confounding factors, high preoperative serum 25-hydroxyvitamine D concentration was related to a decreased risk of POCD (odds ratio [OR]: 0.829, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.708-0.971; P = 0.020), whereas preoperative vitamin D deficiency was associated with an increased risk of POCD (OR: 8.427, 95% CI: 1.595-44.511; P = 0.012).Conclusions: Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in elderly patients undergoing major cancer surgery and increases the risk of early POCD development. Whether prophylactic vitamin D supplementation can reduce POCD in the elderly deserves further study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sophora viciifolia Hance is an edible plant used in traditional Chinese medicine. Sophocarpine, a tetracyclic quinolizidine alkaloid, is one of the most abundant active ingredients in Sophora viciifolia Hance. Here, we study the analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects, as well as the acute toxicity of sophocarpine from Sophora viciifolia Hance in mice. Sophocarpine (20, 40, and 80 mg/kgbw) significantly prolonged the delay period before a hot plate reaction occurred (all P < 0.05), and the delay before a tail-flick response was induced by a warm bath (P < 0.05 ; P < 0.01). Sophocarpine (40, 80 mg/kg) resulted in dose-dependent inhibition of the writhing reaction induced by acetic acid in mice (P < 0.05 ; P < 0.001 , respectively). Sophocarpine (80 mg/kg) reduced the total duration of a formalin-induced pain response (P < 0.05). Sophocarpine prolonged the foot-licking latency of mice after the hot plate reaction, and this effect was antagonized by calcium chloride and enhanced by verapamil. Sophocarpine (20, 40, and 80 mg/kg) significantly inhibited xylene-induced ear edema (P < 0.01 ; P < 0.001 ; P < 0.001 , respectively) and the penetration of acetic acid-induced dye into the peritoneal cavity (P < 0.01 ; P < 0.01 ; P < 0.001 , respectively). It also reduced the levels of proinflammatory cytokine interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and prostaglandin E2 (P < 0.05 , P < 0.01 , P < 0.001) and those of serum nitric oxide (P < 0.05). The results of this study suggest that sophocarpine possesses certain analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities, which may be related to calcium and inhibition of the secretion of inflammatory factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quasi-elastic scattering angular distribution for the 94.5 MeV 17 F radioactive ion beam on the 208 Pb target has been measured. To describe the experimental quasi-elastic scattering angular distribution and explore the reaction dynamic, firstly, the optical potentials with the double-folding São Paulo and Akyüz Winther potentials for both real and imaginary parts were used to analyze the experimental data. It is observed that both theoretical angular distributions are very similar. The optical model results describe reasonably the experimental data until 100 ∘ but underpredict the data for larger angles. Secondly, the continuum discretized coupled channel method (CDCC) was used to study the effect of the breakup channel on the elastic scattering. The double-folding São Paulo and Akyüz Winther potentials were used as nuclear interactions giving again similar results. The agreement with the data is slightly improved at intermediate angles. The sensibility of the CDCC effects upon the nuclear interaction potential was checked. Finally, the influence of inelastic states of both projectile and target, the one-proton, one-neutron, two-neutron and α transfer channels on the quasi-elastic scattering angular distribution is analyzed in the frame of the coupled channel and coupled reaction channel methods, respectively. It is observed that the coupling to the first excited state of 17 F is the one that affects more the elastic scattering, although the inelastic channels of the target also influence it when compared with the optical model results. The effect of the transfer channels on the quasi-elastic angular distribution is negligible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Delirium is common in elderly patients after surgery and is associated with poor outcomes. This study aimed to investigate the impact of intraoperative dexmedetomidine on the incidence of delirium in elderly patients undergoing major surgery. Methods: This was a randomized double‐blind placebo‐controlled trial. Elderly patients (aged 60 years or more) scheduled to undergo major non‐cardiac surgery were randomized into two groups. Patients in the intervention group received a loading dose of dexmedetomidine 0·6 μg/kg 10 min before induction of anaesthesia followed by a continuous infusion (0·5 μg per kg per h) until 1 h before the end of surgery. Patients in the control group received volume‐matched normal saline in the same schedule. The primary outcome was the incidence of delirium during the first 5 days after surgery. Delirium was assessed with the Confusion Assessment Method (CAM) for non‐ventilated patients and CAM for the Intensive Care Unit for ventilated patients. Results: In total, 309 patients who received dexmedetomidine and 310 control patients were included in the intention‐to‐treat analysis. The incidence of delirium within 5 days of surgery was lower with dexmedetomidine treatment: 5·5 per cent (17 of 309) versus 10·3 per cent (32 of 310) in the control group (relative risk (RR) 0·53, 95 per cent c.i. 0·30 to 0·94; P = 0·026). The overall incidence of complications at 30 days was also lower after dexmedetomidine (19·4 per cent (60 of 309) versus 26·1 per cent (81 of 310) for controls; RR 0·74, 0·55 to 0·99, P = 0·047). Conclusion: Intraoperative dexmedetomidine halved the risk of delirium in the elderly after major non‐cardiac surgery. Registration number: ChiCTR‐IPR‐15007654 (www.chictr.org.cn). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study that addresses the problem of estimating range-varying parameters of the height-dependent refractivity over the sea surface from radar sea clutter. It shows that particle filter (PF) can be coupled with the split-step fourier parabolic equation (PE) solution to track range-varying refractive environments from radar sea clutter. It notes that the performances of PF-refractivity from clutter (RFC) algorithm are tested by both simulations and real data estimations.

This article describes a robust method for locating the poles of the spectral-domain Green's functions in a lossless or lossy multilayered medium. Real-coded genetic algorithm (RGA) is first introduced to approximate the locations of the surface- and/or leaky-wave poles and then followed by a Cauchy's integral theorem to rapidly refine the poles and remove the unwanted ones. Numerical examples demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of the method. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 51: 1929–1934, 2009; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.24472 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An unconditionally stable Crank–Nicolson finite-difference time-domain (CN-FDTD) algorithm is presented for three-dimensional microwave circuit analysis. First, Mur's first–order absorbing boundary condition is applied this CN-FDTD algorithm. A symmetric successive over relaxation–preconditioned biconjugate-gradient algorithm is also proposed to solve the large sparse matrix equation obtained in the CN-FDTD method. Resonant cavity and several planar microstrip circuits are presented to illustrate the versatility of this technique. Numerical results indicate that with a time-step size excessively larger than the Courant–Friedrich–Levy limit, the accuracy of CN-FDTD is still much higher than that of the alternating-direction implicit FDTD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The finite element-boundary integral (FE-BI) method is applied for the analysis of scattering and radiation by cavity-backed patch antenna and arrays. In this investigation, the FE-BI formulations have been implemented using brick element volumes and it allows for a particular use of the efficient FFT-based iterative solver. The inner–outer flexible GMRES algorithm is applied to solve the equation with a higher convergence speed when compared with the standard GMRES algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the sparse-matrix/canonical grid (SMCG) method is applied to analyse scattering of randomly positioned dielectric spheroids, the impedance matrix is decomposed into a strong interaction matrix and a weak interaction matrix. The strong interaction portion of the matrix–vector multiplication is computed directly as the moment method (MOM). The far-interaction portion of matrix–vector multiplication is computed indirectly using fast Fourier transforms by a Taylor series expansion of impedance matrix elements about the canonical grid point. However, the condition number of the impedance matrix obtained from the SMCG method becomes large compared to the one from MOM. As a result, the conjugate gradient (CG) method converges slowly. To attack such a trouble, the generalized product-type method based on Bi-CG (GPBi-CG) is used as an iterative solver in this paper. The numerical results show that the GPBi-CG method can achieve good convergence improvement compared to the other iterative methods. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anisotropic media and active properties of the perfectly matched layer (PML) absorbers significantly deteriorate the finite element method (FEM) system condition and as a result, convergence of the iterative solver is substantially slowed down. To address this issue, the symmetric successive over-relaxation (SSOR) preconditioning scheme is applied to the generalized minimal residual (GMRES) for solving a large sparse and non-symmetric system of linear equations resulting from the analysis of ferrite waveguide device by use of edge-based FEM. Consequently, this preconditioned GMRES (PGMRES) approach can reach convergence ten times faster than GMRES for the typical structures. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The choice of general anaesthetics may affect postoperative cognitive outcomes. This study was designed to compare the potential impact of propofol-based vs sevoflurane-based general anaesthesia on the development of delayed neurocognitive recovery in older adults early after major cancer surgery.Methods: Older adults (aged ≥65 and <90 yr) who were scheduled to undergo major cancer surgery (≥2 h) were randomised to receive either propofol- or sevoflurane-based general anaesthesia. Cognitive function was assessed before and 1 week after surgery with a battery of neuropsychological tests. Age- and education-matched non-surgical controls were recruited, and their cognitive functions were tested at comparable time intervals in order to adjust for learning effects from repeated tests. Delayed neurocognitive recovery was diagnosed according to the International Study of Postoperative Cognitive Dysfunction 1 definition.Results: From April 1, 2015 to October 15, 2016, 392 patients were enrolled and randomised. Of these patients, 387 completed the intervention and 30-day follow-up, and 379 completed 1-week neuropsychological tests. Fifty-nine control subjects were enrolled and completed repeated neuropsychological tests. The incidence of delayed neurocognitive recovery at 1 week was significantly lower in the propofol group [14.8% (28/189)] than in the sevoflurane group [23.2% (44/190); odds ratio=0.577; 95% confidence interval, 0.342-0.975; P=0.038]. Safety outcomes did not differ between the two groups.Conclusions: When compared with sevoflurane-based general anaesthesia, propofol-based general anaesthesia might decrease the incidence of delayed neurocognitive recovery in older adults after major cancer surgery.Clinical Trials Registration: NCT02662257; Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (identifier: ChiCTR-IPR-15006209). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deals with a study which verified the smooth-approximation theory for a space-charge dominated beam in an axisymmetric periodic focusing channel. Review of the smooth-approximation theory for an axisymmetric focusing channel; Analysis of the image signals; Significance of the spherical aberration effect in solenoidal focusing system.

Background: Regional anaesthesia may have advantages in preserving immune function. Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) are considered indicators of immune response in the tumor microenvironment and used as a prognostic marker in patients after cancer surgery. This study investigated the effects of combined epidural anaesthesia on the number of TILs in patients undergoing surgery for lung adenocarcinoma.Methods: Patients undergoing radical resection for primary lung cancer were randomized to receive either combined epidural-general anaesthesia (Epi-GA) or general anaesthesia (GA) in an ongoing randomized controlled trial (ChiCTR-TRC-14004136). Excised adenocarcinoma specimens from patients enrolled between 1 June 2015 and 30 November 2015 were selected for immunohistochemical staining of CD8 and FOXP3 molecules. The numbers of positive lymphocytes were counted and expressed as the number of cells per mm2 tumor area.Results: One hundred and twenty-eight patients were recruited and randomized; 64 patients were included in immunohistochemistry analysis (37 received Epi-GA vs. 27 received GA). The number of CD8+ T cells was higher in the Epi-GA group than in the GA group (median [interquartile range]: 292.8 [198.0-418.3] vs. 204.7 [131.1-305.8], P = 0.036); whereas the number of FOXP3+ T cells was less in the Epi-GA group than in the GA group (37.6 [14.7-92.3] vs. 99.8 [68.9-168.3], P < 0.001).Conclusions: For patients undergoing surgery for lung adenocarcinoma under general anesthesia, use of epidural anaesthesia increased CD8+ T cells infiltration but decreased FOXP3+ T cells accumulation in tumor tissues. Epidural anaesthesia may affect TILs in a manner that preserves immune function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fe3O4 thin films with a thickness of about 140 nm have been deposited on MgO (001) substrates by reactive sputtering. Microstructural studies indicated that monocrystalline Fe3O4 thin films were epitaxially grown on the MgO substrates with a cubic-on-cubic orientation relationship with respect to the substrates. Strain field due to slight lattice mismatch between the films and substrates was observed. The saturation moment and the coercivity for in-plane magnetization hysteresis loop were 235 emu/cc and 500 Oe, respectively. The lower saturation moment value of the Fe3O4 thin film suggested that the strain field may play a role in the reduction of magnetization. © 2004 American Institute of Physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on a high-resolution (0.1° × 0.1°) regional ocean model covering the entire northern Pacific, this study investigated the seasonal and interannual variability of the Indonesian Throughflow (ITF) and the South China Sea Throughflow (SCSTF) as well as their interactions in the Sulawesi Sea. The model efficiency in simulating the general circulations of the western Pacific boundary currents and the ITF/SCSTF through the major Indonesian seas/straits was first validated against the International Nusantara Stratification and Transport (INSTANT) data, the OFES reanalysis, and results from previous studies. The model simulations of 2004-12 were then analyzed, corresponding to the period of the INSTANT program. The results showed that, derived from the North Equatorial Current (NEC)-Mindanao Current (MC)-Kuroshio variability, the Luzon-Mindoro-Sibutu flow and the Mindanao-Sulawesi flow demonstrate opposite variability before flowing into the Sulawesi Sea. Although the total transport of the Mindanao-Sulawesi flow is much larger than that of the Luzon-Mindoro-Sibutu flow, their variability amplitudes are comparable but out of phase and therefore counteract each other in the Sulawesi Sea. Budget analysis of the two major inflows revealed that the Luzon-Mindoro-Sibutu flow is enhanced southward during winter months and El Niño years, when more Kuroshio water intrudes into the SCS. This flow brings more buoyant SCS water into the western Sulawesi Sea through the Sibutu Strait, building up a west-to-east pressure head anomaly against the Mindanao-Sulawesi inflow and therefore resulting in a reduced outflow into the Makassar Strait. The situation is reversed in the summer months and La Niña years, and this process is shown to be more crucially important to modulate the Makassar ITF's interannual variability than the Luzon-Karimata flow that is primarily driven by seasonal monsoons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Odorant-binding proteins ( OBPs) are important components in insect olfactory systems that transport semiochemicals through the aqueous sensillum lymph to surface of olfactory receptor neurons. In this study, we cloned the c DNA of odorant-binding protein 2 ( Bhor OBP2) in Batocera horsfieldi ( Hope) and measured the level of the Bhor OBP2 m RNA in a variety of tissues using quantitative reverse transcription and real-time polymerase chain reaction. We found that the Bhor OBP2 m RNA was primarily expressed in the antennae, the level of Bhor OBP2 m RNA was higher in males than in females, and correlated with age and mating status. The Bhor OBP2 m RNA was also expressed in the labial palps at relatively high level, suggesting that it might have a role in gestation as well. To better understand the functions of the Bhor OBP2 protein in odorant reception, recombinant Bhor OBP2 was expressed in Escherichia coli, and the binding specificity of the protein for 18 volatile developmentally relevant chemicals and host-plant-related metabolites were assessed using N-phenyl-1-naphthylamine as a fluorescent probe. Competitive fluorescence binding assays showed that Bhor OBP2 bound a broad range of host-plant-related odorants, including ( E)-2-hexenal, 2-methyl-butanal, salicylaldehyde, (1 S)-(-)-verbenone, ( Z)-3-hexen-1-ol, ( E)-2-hexen-1-ol, β-pinene and ethyl acetate. Our results imply that Bhor OBP2 might play an important role in the selectivity and specificity of odorant reception. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the finite-element boundary integral (FE-BI) method is applied to analyse the electromagnetic scattering from arbitrary objects in the half-space environment. Combined with the real image method to approximate the half-space Green's function, the half-space FE-BI can be extended for electrically large problems by the fast multipole method. An efficient preconditioner is constructed with both the finite-element matrix and the near-field part of the boundary integral equation operator for the FE-BI analysis. The numerical examples demonstrate that this preconditioner is efficient for electromagnetic scattering in the half space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lower hybrid wave (LHW)-plasma coupling experiments in HT-7 [J. K. Xie and HT-7 Group, Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Fusion Energy, Montreal, 1996 (IAEA, Trieste, 1997), Vol. 1, p. 685] were carried out by means of puffing gas (CD4 and D2) just around the antenna. Both experiments show that wave-plasma coupling is improved by the gas puffing. The maximum distance between the plasma and the antenna is limited to about 8 cm due to the plasma disruption. The variation in the lined averaged density in the different channels gives a possible evidence of the mechanism of the ionization of neutral gas. The effect of the gas flow rate on the wave-plasma coupling shows that an optimized gas flow rate is necessary for good coupling, being consistent with simulation through Brambilla theory qualitatively. Experiments with puffing D2 show that the improved coupling results from the global density increase and the local gas puffing. Langmuir probe measurements indicate that the gas puffing effectively increases the density and decreases the temperature in scrape of layer. Studies show that the ionization of the puffed gas is affected by both LHW electric field and plasma temperature. Comparison of D2 and CD4 puffing shows that D2 improves coupling better with less effect on core density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This Letter, proposes an algebraic domain decomposition algorithm (ADDA) to solve large sparse linear systems derived from the vector finite-element method (FEM) for 3D electromagnetic field problems. The proposed method segments the problem into several smaller pieces, solves each subproblem by direct methods, and then reassembles the subproblem solutions together to get the global result. Block LU factorization and multifrontal method are applied to solve each subproblem for the generation of the reduced system, and iterative methods are applied to solve the reduced system. It is shown that if combined with ADDA, biconjugate gradient method (BCG) converges more rapidly than the conjugate gradient method (CG), and both of them are faster than the conventional CG method. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm can efficiently solve large and sparse linear equations arising from the finite-element method for the electromagnetic problems involving complex media such as perfectly matched layers (PMLs), which often make the linear equation ill-conditioned. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 34: 414–417, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.10480 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blue-green GaN-based vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) were fabricated with two dielectric Ta2O5/ SiO2 distributed Bragg reflectors. Lasing action was observed at a wavelength of 498.8 nm at room temperature under optical pumping. Threshold energy density and emission linewidth were 189 mJ/cm2 and 0.15 nm, respectively. The result demonstrates that blue-green VCSELs can be realised using III-nitride semiconductors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the case study of a Chinese woman who developed forgetfulness into memory deterioration after 2 years. A general brain magnetic resonance image showed negative changes but showed typical clinical features of the disease characterized by cerebellar sign, myoclonus and dementia but had longer illness duration that sporadic Creutzfeldt—Jakob disease (CJD).

When two heavy ions near the Fermi energy collide, a warm and low-density region can form in which fragments appear. This region is mainly dominated by proton (p) and alpha (α) particles. In such an environment, the α particles interact with each other and, especially through strong resonances, form complex systems such as 8Be and 12C. Our experiments show that 70(64)Zn(64Ni)+70(64)Zn(64Ni) reactions at E/A=35 MeV/nucleon levels of 8Be appear around relative energies Eij=0.092 MeV, 3.03 MeV as well as above 10 and 100 MeV. We propose a different method to derive the correlation function based on the relative transverse energy distribution to minimize the experimental uncertainties. For the 3α systems, multiresonance processes give rise to excited levels of 12C. In particular, the Hoyle state at 7.654 MeV excitation energy shows a decay component through the ground state of 8Be and also components where two different α couples are at relative energies consistent with the ground state of 8Be at the same time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The multinucleon transfer (MNT) reaction has aroused wide interest in recent years largely due to its ability to produce neutron-rich heavy nuclei. The semiclassical model GRAZING can describe well the experimental MNT data for many medium-heavy systems, but only simply considers neutron evaporation in the deexcitation of primary fragments. In order to describe the final MNT products for heavy and even superheavy systems, we try to consider both the transfer and subsequent deexcitation processes by combining, for the first time, the GRAZING model and the statistical-decay model GEMINI as well as the improved version GEMINI++. Considering fission in the deexcitation of primary fragments by GEMINI++ model, the isotope distributions of final fragments are much wider than those only by GRAZING model, indicating an important role of fission in the deexcitation process for heavy and superheavy fragments. However, our results have large deviations from the GRAZING-F results, which may result from the different technique adopted in the deexcitation process. Moreover, it is shown that the GEMINI++ model is more reasonable than the GEMINI model, because the latter overpredicts the fission probability and the width of fission isotope distributions to a large extent. With GEMINI++ model, the predictions of cross sections for final isotopes can be improved by taking into account charged-particle evaporations, especially the a evaporation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The elastic scattering angular distributions were measured for 50- and 59-MeV 17F radioactive ion beam on a 89Y target. The aim of this work is to study the effect of the breakup of the proton halo projectile on the elastic scattering angular distribution. The experimental data were analyzed by means of the optical model with the double-folding São Paulo potential for both real and imaginary parts. The theoretical calculations reproduced the experimental data reasonably well. It is shown that the method of the data analysis is correct. In order to clarify the difference observed at large angles for the 59-MeV incident energy data, Continuum-Discretized Coupled-Channels (CDCC) calculations were performed to consider the breakup coupling effect. It is found that the experimental data show the Coulomb rainbow peak and that the effect of the coupling to the continuum states is not very significant, producing only a small hindrance of the Coulomb rainbow peak and a very small enhancement of the elastic scattering angular distribution at backward angles, suggesting that the multipole response of the neutron halo projectiles is stronger than that of the proton halo systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a recent transfer reaction measurement of 208Pb(7Li,6He)209Bi at energies around and below the Coulomb barrier, the optical model potentials of the halo nuclear system 6He+209Bi were extracted by fitting the experimental data with the theoretical frameworks of the distorted-wave Born approximation and coupled reaction channels, respectively. With the high-precision result, a complete picture of the behavior of the optical potential for this halo system is clearly derived for the first time. The real potential presents a bell-like shape around the barrier as a normal threshold anomaly. However, for the imaginary part, it first increases with the energy decreasing below the barrier and then falls quickly to 0, hence the threshold energy can be determined by fitting the variation trend. Moreover, the result also provides some evidence that the dispersion relation does not hold for this halo nuclear system, which calls for further investigation of the underlying physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The threshold anomaly of the phenomenological potential has been known for a long time in nuclear reactions at energies around the Coulomb barrier, where the connection between the real and imaginary potentials is well described by the dispersion relation. However, this connection is not clear yet for some weakly bound nuclear systems, especially for reactions induced by exotic radioactive nuclei. In this study, precise optical potentials of the halo nuclear system 6He+209Bi were extracted via 208Pb(7Li,6He) transfer reactions with energies measured downward to the extremely sub-barrier region. The real potential presents a bell-like shape around the barrier as a normal threshold anomaly in tightly bound nuclear systems. However, the imaginary potential shows an abnormal behavior: it increases first with energy decreasing below the barrier and then falls quickly down to 0. It is the first time the threshold of the imaginary potential has been determined in an exotic nuclear system. Moreover, experimental results show the dispersion relation is not applicable for this system, which may be a common phenomenon for exotic nuclear systems. We discuss possible explanations for such a peculiar behavior, but further study is still desired for the underlying physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Angular distributions of the transfer reaction 63Cu(7Li,6He)64Zn were measured at Elab(7Li)=12.67, 15.21, 16.33, 23.30, 27.30, and 30.96 MeV. With the interaction potentials of the entrance channel 7Li+63Cu obtained from elastic scattering data as input, the optical potentials of the halo nuclear system 6He+64Zn in the exit channel were extracted by fitting the experimental data with the distorted-wave Born approximation (DWBA) and coupled reaction channels (CRC) methods, respectively. The results show that the threshold anomaly presents in the weakly bound system of 7Li+63Cu and the dispersion relation can be adopted to describe the connection between the real and imaginary potentials, while both the real and imaginary potentials nearly keep constant within the researched energy region for the halo system of 6He+64Zn. Moreover, calculations by the potentials extracted from the CRC method can reproduce the experimental elastic scattering of the 6He+64Zn system rather well, but those by the potentials from the DWBA method cannot, where the couplings between 7Li and 6He are absent. This work verifies the validity of the transfer method in the medium-mass target region and lays a solid foundation for the further study of optical potentials for exotic nuclear systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]